Beautiful and Evanescent
by flowerbook
Summary: "If we ceased to believe in love, why would we want to live?" Of course it had occured to him that his Katerina was gone forever, but what kind of man would he be if he didn't attempt to bring her back? To save her? Kalijah.
1. The First Sign

**_A/N: First story. Takes place during the time when Kat and Elijah were being 'friendly'. Enjoy!_**

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**_[1]_**

_England, 1492_

_Katerina Petrova was an utterly cheerful young lady. Most of the time. She could easily be compared to a warm breath of bouncy joy and compassion, at least so she had been informed of, mostly by Trevor, the sweet Baron of Pantene, who was completely enamored by her. He was pleasant and helpful, but unfortunately not the one Katerina so desperately seeked and yearned for affection from._

_Klaus - her suitor, had kissed her hand lightly with the so typical dark, brooding look in his bottomless, grayish, navy blue eyes the last evening and in a dull voice sworn to spend today with her, but had he returned from his nightly adventures yet? No._

_Katerina struggled to suppress the rapidly increasing disappointment, rising inside of her._

_"Katerina."_

_The voice was calm and deep, and she lifted her head only to look at the endearing being of Klaus' older brother, Elijah Mikaelson - a tall, lanky man who posessed nut brown, neck long hair with slight waves, thick eyebrows and a hard facial expression._

_He was also - usually - the one to keep her company on the gloomy days when her actual suitor ran off._

_"My Lord," sighed Katerina, quickly rose from her chair and granted him a graceful, brief curtsy. "How is your day going?"_

_"I must say; it just got better."_

_Katerina puckered her lips. "How?"_

_Elijah's face softened a bit and she could even see the small hint of a smile in the corner of his thin mouth._

_"Come," he uttered gently, reaching out his hand towards her. "Let us go."_

* * *

_"My Lord, why did you bring me here?" wondered Katerina, her voice dipped in a lousily covered mix of sadness and frustration. She and Elijah were strolling through the garden of the Mikaelson family, with ruby red roses of the highest delicacy, and grass as fresh and fluttering as the breeze itself. Katerina loved this place. It caused her to be reminded of lovely memories of her mother, who simply had adored roses and had always been so happy whenever Katerina's father had handed her a boquet._

_"I..." for a brief moment it seemed as if Elijah was seeking for the right words, but he gathered himself fast and spoke; "Figured you could use some fresh air. Some entertainment, given that my brother is not around."_

_Katerina found herself smiling at what he said. He was thoughtful. "That is extremely kind of you, but I do not think there is a thing that may be able to lighten my mood today. I'm sorry."_

_"Then why are you smiling so sweetly?" Elijah was obviously amused._

_"Oh." Katerina giggled, realizing that he was right. It did not take as much of an effort as she'd thought to get past the fact that Klaus had once again broken one of his hundred promises._

_"You have such a remarkable decency, My Lord," she complimented blissfully and wiped some non-existent dust off her dress. "A bit difficult to find in men these days."_

_"Oh, why would you say such a thing?" Elijah replied. "There are plenty of perfectly decent men in this world. Only perhaps not... nearby." He chuckled._

"That_ is what I meant."_

_"And based on your courtship with my brother, I surely did assume you were quite if not largely fond of him," Elijah said. "Am I wrong?"_

_"No, of course not."_

_"I do not mean to be ongoing, but is there something about Klaus that is bothering you?"_

_"No. Him and I are happy. Very much so."_

_Elijah blinked, tongue-in-cheek. "But if something _was _bothering you, it'd be private."_

_Katerina nodded. "Yes, My Lord."_

_"Hopping from one subject to another; Trevor seems to me like an excellent young fellow. If you were ever to end your courtship with Klaus, he'll most definitely be ready to sweep you away the very moment after."_

_"Why do you say that?" Katerina thought it horribly rude and disrespectful of him to speak of her courtship with Klaus in that way. It was like Elijah had the future all mapped out, and was just waiting patiently for fate to kick in._

_"Just in case you weren't aware of his tremendous affection for you," Elijah said._

_"I am fully aware of - " Katerina let out a heavy sigh._

_She decided to let it go._

_Several minutes went by as they walked, and Katerina could feel Elijah's gaze burning in her side the whole time._

_"Do you know a game we can play?" she asked, turning to him and abruptly fracturing the silence. Elijah raised an eyebrow, and narrowed his eyes._

_"A game?" He looked surprised. "Why would we play games?"_

_Had he never played games with his siblings before? Katerina had used to play tag with hers all the time._

_"Well, what else to do when you are bored?"_

_"Are you saying I bore you?" Elijah smiled slightly._

_Katerina grinned. "Let's play tag! As I run, you run after and capture me." When Elijah did nothing but stare blankly at her, not quite getting what was going on, Katerina took his hand, and spun into his long, muscular arms. It was a lot of wind today, and being near Elijah made her feel warmer, a sensation she'd longed after from Klaus these past few weeks._

_"Like this," she explained. "And if you manage to do that, it'll be my turn to chase you."_

_"I think I understand," he chortled._

_"Come on!" Katerina grasped the skirt of her dark green dress and stormed as fast as she could, but Elijah stood still. "You have to chase me - "_

_Suddenly, he spurted after her, a playful look decorating his ivory white face. Katerina giggled loudly as they ran, the wind whipping her hair, kissing her skin with its cold lips._

_Elijah gradually stopped after a short while, but Katerina kept going, and eventually also stopped by a small bench made of stone. "You're meant to catch me," she said, smiling._

_"But if I catch you, the game will be over," Elijah replied and threw his arms outwards, his eyes dancing._

_"Thank you for entertaining me."_

_"You looked lonely inside, so I took pity on you." He peeked at her, the corner of his mouth jerking. Normally, Katerina would have been insulted, but not today._

_She tilted her head slightly to the side and sat down at the bench with a silent sigh. "Klaus promised to spend the day with me, but he never returned home from the night."_

_"Yes, Klaus does not live by any rules but his own," Elijah muttered, obivously unhappy with the sudden shift of theme._

_Katerina blinked. "He is a very charming man. Hard for any woman to resist, I suppose."_

_She had not expected an answer quite like the one Elijah gave her; "And yet?"_

_"I know not why he courts me," she admitted, looking up at him. "He seems to not care about me at all."_

_She was unsure if she should share this with Klaus' brother, but he was a good man. He would not tell._

_Elijah crossed his arms tightly over his broad chest, frowning. "Many a union has been built on much less," he stated._

_"Is it wrong to... want more?" Katerina asked._

_Elijah sat down with her and asked carefully; "Do you have more with Trevor?"_

_Their eyes met for a hasty second._

_He looked as he would wither away in a heartbeat. How lost he was. Even when he was smiling, Katherine could still sense a heavily concealed agony._

_Katerina understood that she was having one of those irritating inner monologues again, shook off the sudden trancelike feeling that had sunken on to her and stuck on a rushed, stiff smile._

_"Trevor believes that he loves me, but... true love is not real unless it is returned." She glanced at him. "Do you agree?"_

_Elijah remained still, but at last came up with a gruff reply. "I do not believe in love, Katerina."_

_Katerina's eyebrows went upwards. How was that possible? Everyone believed in love, didn't they?_

_"That is too sad for me to accept, My Lord," she said tenderly, leaning closer, experiencing a dangerous need to touch his arm or hand, somehow._

_"Life is too cruel. If we ceased to believe in love... why would we want to live?"_

_Elijah's mouth curled into a careful smile, and as their gazes once again clashed, his hazel eyes forcelly drilled into Katherine very soul, causing redness to flare up in her cheeks._

_Everything had been fine. Why did he constantly feel obligated to ruin it by_ looking _at her like that? With his eyebrows lowered, his eyes so intense, passionate... Sensual..._

_"What do I interrupt?"_

_Katherine flinched and spun around._

_"He's returned," Elijah said, rising from the bench. "Long night?"_

_Klaus' white blouse and jacket were both covered in carmine red blood, but he was smiling smugly like there was no tomorrow, seeming unharmed._

_"What has happened?" asked Katerina, stretching out her hand to look at the fabric._

_Klaus stopped her by taking her shoulder, jerking her towards him. "Some villagers picked a fight at the tavern," he said smoothly. Suddenly, Katerina found herself walking after him, not asking any more questions._

_She rotated her head to glance at Elijah where he stood, unable to say anything._

_"Bye," Katerina mouthed, but knew he couldn't hear her._


	2. Tangles All over

**A/N: ****_Howdie. Mentioning that I do not own The Vampire Diaries, and that all paragraphs and chapters written in italics are flashbacks didn't slip through my mind, did it? Well, anyway, you probably figured that out on your own, so enjoy!_**

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**[2]**

_England, 1492_

_Weeks passed, and Elijah kept conversing with the beautiful Katerina every time Klaus went out - which was in truth unquestionably often. _

_He shouldn't be doing it, though. He knew that. He knew that his contrite heart shouldn't throb like a hammer every time she laughed, every time she smiled and spoke, but she was so astonishing to him, so magnificently stunning. So bursting with life and spunk and spirit, it took his very breath away._

_One day, he agreed with himself not to resist it anymore. If Klaus was so driven to sacrifice this girl in the ritual, Elijah wished and was determined to spend every minute she had left alive with her. He... God, he thought he might be in love with Katerina, and found himself feeling less concerned than he should about what Klaus would think, and what he always told him._

'We do not feel, and we do not care._'_

_Elijah felt. He cared, and deeply, too._

_"Speaking of the party that'll be held in a few days," he said, throwing a look at his brother. "Will Katerina be attending it, by any means?"_

_It was Elijah's many centuries and something birthday soon. He'd lost count of his years, actually. It felt strange._

_Klaus squinched and smiled a smile that was frightening, perhaps for others. But Elijah knew him. It was only a facade to make sure everyone knew who was in charge._

_"Well, certainly. Why wouldn't she? I am her suitor, am I not?" He snickered, probably thinking of all the nights they'd spent..._

_Elijah grunted, an atypic action when it came to him - the patient, intelligent, less dangerous brother of the two._

_"Yes, right," he said immovably. "Niklaus, there is something I've wanted to ask you for some time."_

_"There is," Klaus echoed. "You want to escort my Katerina to the party."_

_The sound of him calling Katerina 'his', had Elijah igniting in displeasure. He clenched his jaws and glared out in the air. "Yes."_

_Klaus scowled. "This is not the time to develop idiotic feelings, Elijah. The full moon is here in a week, and she is human. She's emotionally insignificant to us."_

_"I do not care for her," Elijah snapped, hating himself for the obvious lie in the tone of his voice. "I do not care. Or feel."_

_"Then why?" asked Klaus sharply, taking a stone hard step towards him. _

_Elijah combed through his mind for something to say. "I... I want to drink from her. Just a sip. It will be my birthday, after all. She looks... tasty."_

_"And for that to happen, you must spend all evening with her?"_

_"It sweetens the flavor."_

_Klaus let out a short laugh. "Then you may take her. But don't drain her. That is my job."_

_"I won't," Elijah answered, chuckling tensely along with him._

* * *

_He found her in the garden, sitting in the high grass, wearing a violet dress, pearl earrings and no shoes._

_"Katerina," Elijah said, trying not to startle her. "I have looked for you."_

_She turned around and smiled heartedly as she saw him, her shapely lips pulling back and revealing two rows of snow white teeth. "My Lord Elijah. I'm glad you found me."_

_Up from the grass she jumped and trotted over to him, her hair flowing like dark waves in the mild breeze. "We must speak."_

_"Yes, so we must," Elijah agreed and took her soft hand in his, caressing it lightly with his mouth, never jerking his eyes off her face. "My brother has given me the permission to escort you to my birthday celebration in a couple of days, which I would be delighted to do. If you do not mind, that is."_

_Katerina tilted her head to the side - a habit of hers, and pressed her eyebrows together, eyeing him in confusion. "But won't that be... inaproperiate?"_

_"No, not in the least. And I'd appreciate if you gave me an answer as directly as at all possible, because - "_

_"Yes," Katerina interfered, appearing nearly bewildered with herself. "Yes, I would love to go with you, My Lord."_

_Elijah grew warmer, and had to fight himself not to grin widely like a fool. He let her hand fall and swallowed strongly. "Wonderful."_

_"But this will end my courtship with Klaus, won't it?" asked Katerina._

_"Absolutely not," Elijah hastily said. _

_"Oh." She hinted to be saddened by this, and stroke the skirt of her dress with her palms. Elijah squinted. _

_"Why do you seem disappointed?"_

_Katerina blinked frantically, her breath turning heavier. "I - I... My Lord, you must promise to not share this with Klaus, but I intend to break off my courtship with him."_

_"And you plan to do that because...?" Elijah put an effort in sounding upset from this. _

_"He's not for me," Katerina said. "As I told you; I wish for more. Much more. Tenderness. All consuming love. And Klaus cannot give me that."_

_"Then who can?" Elijah asked hoarsely, discovering that his hand was placed on Katerina's. "Who can give you more?"_

_Her circled eyelids fluttered, and her lips parted as she slid her hand out of his grasp. __"Trevor has begged me for my hand for a long time now, I consider - "_

_"So now you return his love." Elijah's voice was harsh and cold._

_"Elijah - My Lord, I - you must understand that... I cannot - We cannot..."_

_"I know." He knew. They could never build a life together, they could not be wedded, have children, a home... But there was still a slight happiness in imagining._

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_**This was short, but longer chapters are to come. Be patient, friends...**_


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